


How Could An Angel Break My Heart?

by Valerie_Vancollie



Category: Numb3rs (TV)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Romance, Break Up, Broken Engagement, Broken Promises, Cancer, Canon Compliant, Canon Era, Canon Het Relationship, Canon Related, Canon Universe, Challenge Response, Community: numb3rswriteoff, Drama & Romance, Engagement, Established Relationship, F/M, Het, Implied/Referenced Character Death, LiveJournal, LiveJournal Prompt, Long-Distance Relationship, Missing Scene, Mother-Son Relationship, Originally Posted on LiveJournal, POV Don Eppes, POV Male Character, Pre-Canon, Prompt Fic, Prompt Fill, Relationship(s), Short, Short One Shot, Unhealthy Relationships, referenced scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:55:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24944959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Valerie_Vancollie/pseuds/Valerie_Vancollie
Summary: While at home helping to take care of his dying mother, Don gets a letter from his fiancée.
Relationships: Don Eppes & Margaret Eppes, Don Eppes/Kim Hall
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2





	How Could An Angel Break My Heart?

**Author's Note:**

> This is an old fic being posted here for the first time now that I have an AO3 account. Unlike for my other fic, my original site for this fandom still exists and is [3695](https://valeriev84.livejournal.com/).
> 
> **Time:** pre-Season 1  
>  **Spoilers:** _Counterfeit Reality_  
>  **Note:** This fic was written for one of the Angst vs Schmoop Challenges at [numb3rswriteoff](https://numb3rswriteoff.livejournal.com/). It is the Team Angst entry for the word prompt _how_.

Don grabbed the post from the mailbox and shut it. He started flipping through the letters as he made his way back towards the house. Just as he reached the front steps, he froze as he caught sight of his fiancée's distinctive handwriting. A wave of dread washed over him as he simply stared at the letter for a moment, unable to so much as breathe.

Why was Kim writing him a letter?

He didn't understand why she didn't just call him like he'd been doing, trying to get in touch with her. It had been over a week since he'd heard anything from her, but not from a lack of trying on his part. It seemed like whenever he did was a bad time for her as all of his attempts just rang until they went to voicemail. He'd left messages the first few times, but then had stopped, the pain at her apparent rejection cutting too deep. Not that he'd had much time to ponder that feeling too closely, not with his mother's rapidly worsening condition and all of the care she now needed. With Charlie out in the garage, burying himself in his stupid equations, he and Dad had been left to take care of everything themselves.

The sudden weakness in his knees made Don sit down before he fell, dropping onto the steps with enough force to make him wince. He swallowed, his mouth suddenly dry, as he continued to look at the letter, the dread coiling in the pit of his stomach. Absently, he noticed the special postage, indicating the letter weighed more than a normal one should. He ran his thumb over it as he wondered exactly what it was that Kim was so afraid of telling him over the phone.

Don wasn't sure how much time had passed before he managed to force himself to turn the letter over so that he could open it. He'd just grasped it when he froze anew. His fingers had brushed against an object in the envelope, probably the object which had caused the letter to need the additional postage.

An object he instantly recognized.

His stomach dropped even as his mind tried to deny what his fingers were telling him. No, it wasn't possible. No, it simply _couldn't_ be what he thought it was. It just couldn't, because that would mean...

No, not possible.

Even as his mind tried its hardest to shy away from the implications or to find plausible alternatives, Don knew, in his heart, that what he felt within the envelope was the engagement ring he'd given Kim. The one he'd put on her finger after weeks of carrying it around in his pocket, trying to find the perfect time and place to pop the question to her. After weeks of toying with the small box and the diamond ring within it.

Don had gotten it out of the box often enough to be able to identify the ring from touch alone, which was exactly why he now knew, despite all the reasoning of his mind, what it was he was feeling. It was the ring, he was sure of it. The realization slowly seeped in, his entire being too shocked at this sudden turn of events to really react at first.

He didn't understand.

Didn't understand why Kim was doing this. Why she was breaking off their engagement like this with no warning or attempt to reconcile whatever the problem was. He hadn't even known she'd been so unhappy as to even consider this. Was it because he was here in LA for so long? But his mother was sick, her future mother-in-law! Where else was he going to be? Besides, it wasn't like he hadn't asked her to come with him. As soon as it had become apparent that this was going to take a while, he'd flown back to Albuquerque, both to pick up more things and to arrange for extended leave, but also to ask Kim to join him in LA for a bit. He still didn't understand why she'd refused. The Bureau would easily have granted her the time given the circumstances.

So she couldn't say it was because of the extended separation, she'd chosen that when she'd refused to join him. If anything, _he_ should be the one upset about it. Here he was, in the middle of his first big blow since their engagement and where was she? Several states away, unwilling to come and support him during this trying time when he needed her more than ever. He felt a faint stirring of anger as he thought again about the hurt he'd only allowed himself to feel late at night, just before he fell into an exhausted slumber.

How?

How could she do this to him? How could she do this to him _now_ of all times? His mother was dying, slowly but surely slipping away from them, one painful inch at a time, and Kim chose now of all times to break up with him? To break off their engagement?

His breathing was coming hard and fast now, but still he couldn't get enough air. Darkness crept into the edge of his vision and he felt physically sick. Gripping the mail in one hand, he dropped his head between his knees and concentrated on not throwing up.

He couldn't afford this now. He couldn't afford to get sick or to let his emotions get in the way. His mother was dying, both she and Dad were relying on him to help them, to be strong for them. Mom needed all the strength she could get, both physical and emotional, and so did his father. Dad didn't say anything, but Don could feel it in the way looked at and touched him, as if he were drawing strength from his eldest's presence and the calm façade he forced himself to present so that they wouldn't see how much this was affecting him. They couldn't afford to worry about him now, Charlie was already drawing far too much attention away from Mom as it was, he didn't want them wasting any more of it on him.

Not now, not when Mom needed it herself. So, no, he couldn't afford to get sick now, no matter what might be happening to his own personal life. This was more important. Mom was _dying_.

None of which made a damn difference to his heart. No matter how much he tried to shove the hurt aside, to focus instead on the here and now, it felt like Kim had just ripped his heart out and shredded it to a thousand tiny little pieces that she'd thrown into his face out of spite. Yet, even given all of that, he couldn't work up any more anger towards her, only more pain and an ever increasing inability to understand.

Why?

Why was Kim doing this? Yes, they'd argued more than ever lately, the stress of their separation and his mother's illness wearing on them both, but that was normal. All couples argued, all couples went through rough patches, it was part of being in a relationship, but that didn't mean they wouldn't work out. It didn't mean they were doomed, merely that they were normal and had some issues to work out. Well, at least that was his take on it, clearly Kim felt otherwise.

The sudden nausea was back and Don felt his eyes tear up as he ran his fingers over the ring still encased within the envelope. He brought his free hand to cover his eyes and bit his lower lip as he tried to regain control of his emotions. He wanted nothing more than to shout and scream, to smash his fists against something, to cause some physical damage to reflect the pain he was feeling, but he couldn't. It would attract too much attention and he didn't want to add this new blow to what his parents were already dealing with. Alternatively, he wanted to find a nice dark spot and crawl in there and simply ignore the world as he licked his wounds, but again, he couldn't.

He simply didn't have that luxury right now. He couldn't afford to be so selfish. He couldn't-

"Donny? Honey, are you still here?"

"Yes, Mom," Don called out, stuffing the still unopened letter into his pocket. "I'm coming."

10 October 2009


End file.
